Thursday, December 31, 2015

A Christmas Special Night by the Pocket Jazz Orchestra led by Jeremy McMurray with guitarist Paul Donnelly as guest alongside some of the best Teesside Jazz Musicians - as I am sure readers will all, already, know. They played many Jazz standards including compositions by Monk and Parker with a few vocals by various guest singers. The Ship at Redmarshall was packed, with many people dining, the food was excellent, a great atmosphere. The Band will be playing at the Ship on the last Thursday of every Month. Ron Hampton.

Sadly, a touch of manflu kept me away from the Strictly Smokin' Big Band's Xmas bash at Hoochie Coochie on Tuesday. Russell, who'd been at the afternoon Glenn Miller/Ray McVay gig at Sage Gateshead, chartered a light aircraft to ferry him across the River Tyne to Pilgrim St but, alas, never arrived. It was thought that history had repeated itself but no, Russell was spotted safe and sound the following day in the North Shields/Cullercoats area.

So, as any SSBB gig is of mega interest, and, by all accounts, this was a cracking session, we'd like to ask anyone who was there - and there were a couple of hundred, I'm told, - to send us a few words and a photo so that the occasion can be saved for posterity.

Kavanaugh works many of the L.A. Hot Clubs so it isn't surprising that there is a contemporary Django feel to much of his playing and, sometimes it isn't contemporary at all! I'm Confessin' can hold its own in any timescale.

The Magnesia Bank’s house beer Maggie Bank (Cullercoats Brewery) looked the pick. Walked in with
trumpeter Miles Watson, hopeful of a turnout to exceed the quintet on the
stand. Quintet outnumbered (just), September
(December!) in the Rain seemed apt. Don’t
Get Around Much Any More (some don’t), then This Can’t Be Love. This is the kind of session the casual visitor would
enjoy, sitting with a pint, listening to a relaxed group of friends playing a
few tunes. Miles sang, Laurie played tenor, Roy, keyboards (and bass pedals),
Robin, tasteful guitar, and the man who can walk on water, Peter on drums.*

Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Got money to
burn? See out the old, give yourself a New Years’ Eve jazz treat at an
up-market gig near you! Jazz? Well…expect party-time function material and you
won’t be too disappointed. From the Cherry Tree to the Vermont, to swanky
countryside hotels, a top-class evening is yours for the princely sum of…

The UK Glenn Miller Orchestra directed by Ray McVay
returned to Sage Gateshead to play a sold out matinee show. All 1700 seats occupied
a matter of days after Christmas was a sure sign of the band’s popularity and,
of course, the enduring popularity of their raison d’êtré – Major Glenn Miller.

The tunes, largely associated with Miller, together
with a smattering of other numbers, were instantly recognisable, such was, and
is, the popular entertainment status of Miller. Caribbean Clipper, I Got a
Gal in Kalamazoo, Jumpin’ at the
Woodside, number after number, the audience knew them all. The focal point
of the performance shifted from a vocalist to a vocalist, to a vocal troupe to
a dance troupe. Catherine Sykes, a graduate of Leeds College of Music, shared
the spotlight with veteran Colin Anthony. Sykes sang All of Me, Anthony A
Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square. Class performers fronting a big band,
they vacated the stage returning from time to time to sing some more
favourites.

I'm always wary when packages arrive from ECM - I sometimes immerse them in water before opening. Could be a musical timebomb which, in a sense, this is!

The three CDs that comprise The First Quartet, released as part of the Old and New Masters series, date back to the period 1978-1980 when Abercrombie made his first albums [Arcade; Abercrombie Quartet; M] as the leader of a regular group. This is their first appearance digitally (Arcade was briefly available on CD in Japan) and serve to reinforce the belief of many guitar buffs that Abercrombie can hold his head up high alongside Metheny and Schofield.

Occasionally, for a variety of reasons, a CD review
will bypass Bebop Spoken Here’s all-too-busy editor. Alexis Cairns’ 2011 debut recording
This is New to Me is one of them. A
graduate of the fertile Leeds scene, Cairns’ album comprises ten original
compositions. A bold approach, if ever there was one, to forego at least one or
two standards, Cairns had a trump card, maybe two, up her sleeve in being a
writer of melodic tunes and in recruiting three fine musicians to work on the
project.

Down Beat’s 80th Annual Readers’ Poll produced few
surprises. The consolidation and confirmation of status is evident across the
many categories. Inducted into Down Beat’s Hall of Fame is Tony Bennett. The Jazz Group award went to Snarky Puppy. WyntonMarsalis won the Trumpet section by a
street with Terence Blanchard placing in the top ten. The Messengers’ alumnus –
Blanchard, not Marsalis – will be at Sage Gateshead in 2016 during the
Gateshead International Jazz Festival. Marcus Miller, heard recently at Sage
Gateshead, came within a whisker of claiming the Electric Bass crown. A mere 13
votes separated him and the top man Stanley
Clarke. They polled well over 3000 votes between them. Did the presiding
officer call for a recount?

Don’t’ fear them, clowns that is. The Liverpool-based
Blind Monk Trio appears fearless in its direct, take-no-prisoners assault on
the senses. The trio’s 2014 recording is a roller coaster fairground ride of
relentless full-on tenor to swashbuckling swing time invention to manic Balkan episodes.
Eight compositions – with a total running time of just short of forty minutes –
serve as an accurate summation of the live experience.

Our monthly jam sessions, Am Jam and More Jam, continue on the second and fourth Sundays of each
month, 3-6pm and a new (very old) weekly session, Take it to the Bridge, begins on Wednesday 6 January at 8pm.

I met Joanna a couple of times at the Spice of Life in Soho and I'm delighted that she's now well established on the New York scene. The CD is set for release early next year and will, hopefully, be reviewed here.

Thursday, December 24, 2015

George Gray, an old friend from my music store days, kindly sent me an interesting 9 min. clip of a gig at the old Majestic Ballroom (now the o2 Academy). It features (visually) The Terry Lightfoot Band and Newcastle's River City Jazzmen. The RCJ boys include Herbie Hudson, Joe Errington, Joe Shenton and Jimmy Stewart. Clive Gray and Ronnie McLean (I think) can be spotted near the bar and George thinks Eric Burdon, who sang with the Mighty Joe Young Band (they weren't caught on camera), may also be seen on the dance floor (1:47 in wearing a light suit).

It's a wonderful archive of that year when Trad, temporarily, halted the advance of Rock and Roll.

The only disappointing thing is that the music you hear was added later and not played by those on screen which is why it sounds much more sedate than either Lightfoot or the River City Jazzmen did.

We've had parties and we've had parties this Christmas, but this one! This was the party to end all parties! When King Bee decide to party they do it in style!

Each player dressed in biblical fashion eg: Murphy and Marriot were the two wise men (they couldn't find a third one). Brady, an angel (complete with halo). Glendinning (wore a coat of many colours), Jelly (not sure if he was King Herod or some other Bethlehem bigwig). Mark Hand, dep keyboard man down from Glasgow, wore a crown of some sort (I really should have paid more attention in my Sunday School years). Richard Burns, the tallest member of the band, portrayed the infant Jesus (complete with straw from the manger around his neck). However, David Wilde, as the saxophone playing Virgin Mary, may have been miscast!

Forget about the jazz! This was a hoot - a.k.a. entertainment! Covers of 1960's pop, lot's of motown, soul and funk and how many bands do you know that use a mellophonium? No saxes, guitars or double basses just brass, brass, brass, brass, brass, keys, drums and vocals.

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

Have
you finished your Christmas shopping? No? You’d do well to buy this lovely CD
for someone. Here we have many typical Geordie songs such as The Keel Row and The Water Of Tyne, but what struck me is that we don’t listen
carefully enough to these lyrics: for instance, the title track, Wherever Ye Gan You’re Sure To Find A
Geordie, suggests that you’ll meet a Geordie even in the afterlife! How
many of us could tell the story of the Lambton Worm in detail, or draw a
timeline of the Blaydon Races journey? Roly gives us a gentle, homely take on
these songs that we think we know, presented with excellent musicianship and
touches of sly humour. The much-maligned
banjo and ukulele come across as serious instruments in Roly’s hands, and the
guitar fares well.

Scottish jazz
quartet SQUARE ONE are all set for a flying start to 2016 with a significant
recording project in the pipeline, and a major funding boost behind their
ambitious plans for the future.

Square One have
already caught the ear of influential critics, made an outstanding EP of
shimmering beauty and originality, and recently became the proud recipients of
a Peter Whittingham Jazz Award. This prestigious accolade is the catalyst that
will enable them to go to the next level and fulfil their undoubted promise.

And so the Christmas party season rolls on. Today it was the turn of the Crescent Club at Cullercoats to deal out the delicious delicacies. Sausage rolls, nibbles on sticks, open sandwiches, some unidentified objects - the mystery adding to the sense of adventure without detracting from the taste - and, if this wasn't enough, there was also real ale at £2 a pint and a raffle with 15 prizes.

Blaydon Jazz Club’s Christmas party at the Black Bull
attracted the regulars and they did themselves proud in providing a sumptuous
DIY buffet. Then there was the music: a jazz club known across the region, and
beyond, for its unfailing commitment to swinging jazz welcomed erstwhile club
pianist Jeremy McMurray, the always welcome Neil Harland (a musician’s
musician), drummer David Francis and special guest James Birkett (guitar).

Graham Justin – Trumpet/flugel; Damian Cook – alto/tenor; Stuart Davies – Guitar/vocal; Greg Arrowsmith – Keys; Joe Britton – Bass Guitar; Ollie Boorman – Drums.(Review by Lance).Panto party time at the Globe. Once again the Jazz Coop lured the band from the Theatre Royal's production of Dick Whittington to perform, and perform they did! The room was comfortably full with Coop members and Theatre Royalty all enjoying yet another Gig of the Year (in my eyes at least). Next year I think it will be easier to list those gigs that didn't fall into that category - so much good music has been played around the various venues.

Sunday, December 20, 2015

Take two: a second consecutive night at the Black Swan
for the most popular big band around. A second consecutive full house…quite an
achievement! The basement venue afforded the band the luxury of setting up
without having to squeeze brass, reeds and a rhythm section into the usual
small jazz venue with the dimensions of a telephone box. All seats were taken
half an hour before the start, latecomers stood to one side. Drinks orders were
of the ‘precariously-balanced tray snaking its way through the throng’ kind.
The management of Newcastle Arts Centre couldn’t be other than delighted. A
success every which way and MD Michael Lamb had yet to strike up the band!

Saturday, December 19, 2015

Why is there an image of Dick Whittington? Because
this Sunday, December 20, the musicians from the Theatre Royal (and some of the
cast and backstage staff) are coming to the Globe for a
let-your-hair-down, after-show party.

When they
came last year it was an amazing night of smoking jazz, funky grooves, dirty
dancing and hard drinking.

The band
will be led by Damian Cook, past winner of BBC Big Band Soloist of the Year,
who in addition to his serious jazz credentials, has toured with top R&B
acts such as the Temptations, The Four Tops, & Martha Reeves & The
Vandellas.

Kurt Elling presents Radio 4’s Archive on 4: The Selling of Sinatra (Saturday, 8:00pm) in which
the Chicagoan looks at the image making of Francis Albert Sinatra. Clare Teal (Sunday 20, Radio 2, 9:00pm)
presents a big band concert recorded at the Stables, Bucks, with guests Gary
Williams, Pee Wee Ellis and Georgina Jackson. Tonight (Sunday 20) at eleven o’clock the final
installment of Radio 3’s annual EBU Day
of Christmas Music comes from Sofia, Bulgaria. The Bulgarian National Radio
Jazz Chorus and Big Band, conducted by Antoni Donchev, perform Duke Ellington’s
Sacred Concert.

More Sinatra, the actor as
opposed to the Voice of the Century, in a 1954 Mystery Theater broadcast written by George Leffert (BBC Radio 4
Extra, Monday, 3:00pm).

It was Black-Eye Friday, apparently. At the Jazz Café
it was Fantastic Friday! Heading home for Christmas, albeit by a circuitous
gigging route, tenor man Matt Anderson and guitarist Aubin Vanns called into
the Jazz Café to play a Friday night duo gig. Outside, those looking to present
a seasonal shiner went their merry way; those looking to avoid any such
prospect, kept their head down, their metaphorical guard up, on the ‘office
do’ merry meander.

The SSBB's Christmas session at the Black Swan Arts Centre is now so much a 'must have ticket' event that, this year, they extended it to two nights and still the tickets flew. Given the time of year it wasn't surprising that there was much Christmas Fayre on the musical menu but, rather than take away the sound of surprise for tonight's audience I won't give away the set list secrets save to say that some were predictable and some certainly weren't!

From the moment the band kicked off with a
100mph hour explosive blast to the moment it ended in a gentle coda this gig
was the ultimate in high energy ‘Power Jazz’. There was standing room only for
former Mercury prize nominees Led Bib and the audience was not disappointed.
The music was loud, brash and unforgiving. Holub on drums and Donin on bass
were unrelenting, creating a storm behind the 2 alto players Grogan and Jazz
Café regular Chris Williams, (this being his third visit to the upstairs room
in as many months). Mclaren on keyboards got up to all sorts of mischief
with the electronics at his disposal. This band certainly don’t do cool andeasy
listening but rather wild, invigorating and totally uplifting contemporary
jazz.Photos.

GRAMMY nominated and award-winning Cuban jazz pianist Roberto Fonseca
joins the line-up for Gateshead International Jazz Festival. The festival, the
UK’s biggest held under one roof, runs from Friday 15 – Sunday 17 April 2016 at
Sage Gateshead.

The fully-fledged Buena Vista Social Club prodigy was born in Havana
into a musical family and started studying piano at the age of 8, drawing
inspiration from afro-Cuban music and jazz musicians such as Herbie Hancock and
Keith Jarrett, but also old American funk and soul classics. Roberto has gone
on to work with various members of the Buena Vista Social Club including stars
such as Omara Portuondo, Ibrahim Ferrer and Rubén González and he has recently
collaborated with Mali’s music sensation Fatoumata Diawara.

Vasilis Xenopoulos & Paul Edis/Gala Big Band @ Ushaw
College. Great BSH review which was instrumental (I use the
word advisedly) in prompting us to visit Ushaw College - very interesting
history and architecture (and a nice tea in the cafe!).

Zoë Gilby
is a jazz vocalist and songwriter that has been making a real impression on the
jazz scene today. A repertoire starting with her compelling original
compositions written with double bassist husband Andy Champion and performed by
her highly accomplished band, guitarist Mark Williams and drummer Richard
Brown. Her stockpile of music reaches a wide range of more contemporary
material from composers such as Pink Floyd to Kate Bush. Also included are some
superb interpretations of “The Great American Songbook”

Her
influences include Carmen McRae, Sheila Jordan, Kate Bush and Joni Mitchell
Twice she has received touring support from Jazz Services and has performed
with some of the UK top jazz musicians, including Jim Mullen Organ Trio, Dave
Newton, Alan Barnes and Tony Faulkner.

Saxophonist Graeme
Wilson and Pianist Paul Edis combine to perform a concert of music from the
hugely influential pianist and composer Thelonious Sphere Monk! The last time
this duo played the Music of Monk, Jazz Blog Bebop Spoken Here described is as
a ‘contender for gig of the year’.

February 26 - Virtuoso
Jazz Trio

Whenever
this trio assembles on the concert platform the sense of fun and excitement is
palpable. Their repertoire is rooted in the very best of the Great American
Songbook. to which audiences of all ages and musical tasted respond with a
sense of delight. George Macdonald (Clarinet) James Birkett (Guitar) Tony Abel
(Bass)

Mike Clarke on bass guitar tonight who, along with Messrs Gilligan and Wight, opened with the very appropriate A Foggy Day. At first it seemed as though the misty conditions outside were going to keep the punters indoors - as if! By the time Alice in Wonderland unfolded (with a very melodic bass solo from Clarke) the Mad Hatters and March Hares were propping up the bar and occupying the seating area. So What? Dear Old Stockholm and Blue Monk followed before the first of the many switcheroo's common to jam sessions.

Tuesday, December 15, 2015

What can I say? We’ve seen Shiver in various locations so we know
their style, we know what to expect. Or rather, we thought we knew what to
expect - would anything be different for a ‘Splinter’ session?

Overall, it began with what appeared to be a slow-burning fuse which
gave time for the audience to witness and relish the construction of the
multi-layered soundscape which was slowly unfolding in complexity and power.
Bass loops, guitar loops, with adjustments to both yet fully
supported throughout by Hendrickx’s own rhythms perfectly complementing the
guitar and bass riffs and rhythms.

Monday, December 14, 2015

We don't do singles! and we especially don't do Christmas singles!! I can already hear Russell Bah Humbugging faster than Ella scatting Lady Be Good! However, Christmas being a time of good will and all that jazz, I couldn't fail to respond to this request from Leeds deity James Hamilton.Lance.

(Preview by Paul Bream).I plugged this in last week's 'Alert', but we've all got lots to think
about in the run up to Xmas, so a reminder wouldn't go amiss. In fact it
would be remiss to miss it!

I mentioned that the band's newest CD, 'The People in your
Neighbourhood', had been widely reviewed as the best of their twelve year
career, but it's also worth emphasising that much of the praise centred on the
fact that it's a live recording, capturing the excitement they generate at
gigs. The Guardian referred to "the in-your-face urgency of a live album",
and online magazine The Quietus, rather more expansively, hailed ""a
near flawless blend of instantly memorable composed tunes and the kind of wild
improvisation-informed sections that only really falls into place when a band
has an extensive history of live performances to draw upon."

Released in October, I've struggled to come to terms with this one. Perhaps, having been in a Sinatra frame of mind coupled with the more accessible Danish vocalist Mads Mathias' recent album Free Falling, this album by Dutchman Kogging looked to be a bridge too far, However, I persevered and, gradually, saw the light and I finally found myself actually enjoying it! Not just the vocal or even Michael Moore's pithy solos but, the power of the lyrics.

The band arrived in good time despite the weather -
apparently there was no snow in Glasgow. This was the last date of their UK
tour which had seen them travel the length of the country from Aberdeen to
Poole in Dorset. Sadly, a number of those who had been planning to attend were
prevented by a heavy fall of snow. However, the audience who did make it were
very appreciative.Euan
Burton, who played his amazing fold away double bass brilliantly, has assembled
an excellent quartet. Tom Gibbs, seen recently with Brian Molley at the Globe, exemplary
on piano, Adam Jackson, sublime on alto sax and Alyn Cosker provided precocious
percussion at the kit.Two sets of original music made all the more
enjoyable by Euan's explanations of their meaning or what they were meant to
evoke.

Today, being That centenary, it seems appropriate that I mention a CD featuring a keeper of the flame who upholds the tradition without losing his individuality.

Mads Mathias is as Danish as Lurpak and as American as any singer/saxophonist working the GASbook side of the street. The difference is that these are, all but one (Sugar), his own compositions that he is adding to that infinitesimal work.

Friday, December 11, 2015

It's countdown time for BBC Radio 2's The Sinatra Legacy. 8pm - that's 18 minutes as I type! Tonight, Friday Night really is Music Night. Dig Kurt Elling, Anthony Strong, Clare Teal and Guy Barker and the BBC Big Band in a tribute to the man who would have turned 100 tomorrow. (14 minutes).

Graeme Wilson is on Tyneside to play a couple of gigs.
The first of them at the Lit & Phil went down a storm. The monthly Friday
lunchtime concert series continues to attract near full houses and Wilson’s
appearance was no exception. Having spent several years as one of Tyneside’s
Honorary Geordies, Wilson returned to his native Scotland to take up a job in
the world of academia, yet makes time to meet up with, perform, and record with
three of the north east’s finest musicians.

About this blog - contact details.

Bebop Spoken Here -- Here, being the north-east of England -- centred in the blues heartland of Newcastle and reaching down to the Tees Delta and looking upwards to the Land of the Kilt.Not a very original title, I know; not even an accurate one as my taste, whilst centred around the music of Bird and Diz, extends in many directions and I listen to everything from King Oliver to Chick Corea and beyond. Not forgetting the Great American Songbook the contents of which has provided the inspiration for much great jazz and quality popular singing for round about a century.The idea of this blog is for you to share your thoughts and pass on your comments on discs, gigs, jazz - music in general. If you've been to a gig/concert or heard a CD that knocked you sideways please share your views with us. Tell us about your favourites, your memories, your dislikes.Lance (Who wishes it to be known that he is not responsible for postings other than his own and that he's not always responsible for them.)